


you can quote me (cause I just said it)

by Zoanzon



Series: Fragments of Larger Worlds [2]
Category: Fantastic Four, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: (not visible in-snippet but that's the time in-universe), Gen, Post-Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), is not actually written as a second-person pov fic even though the summary has that type of leaning, posting to try and motivate myself, smaller part of a larger story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-18
Updated: 2019-01-18
Packaged: 2019-10-12 02:06:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17458550
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zoanzon/pseuds/Zoanzon
Summary: You fund a project, that project's either supposed to succeed, or to fail. What'snotsupposed to happen is the project succeeding...and also giving those involved superpowers.This is your life now. What a grand fucking time.(Or: Tony is starting to regret voluntarily doing anything with Reed Richards,especiallyfunding the man's research. The fact this mess has snowballed enough to drag him in front of an investigations committee is icing on the cake.Fucking Richards.)





	you can quote me (cause I just said it)

**Author's Note:**

> A MCU fic fusing the Fantastic Four into the series, the timing could - just from this - fit anywhere in the series. However, the place I'm setting it - as part of the hopefully-soon larger story - is post-AoU, with Tony trying to invest in the future in a few different ways to drag the world forward and upward after the Ultron debacle fragments the Avengers.
> 
> Specifically relevant to this debacle, a project in commercial spaceflight partially funded by Stark Industries - with Reed Richards and Susan Storm as the designers and developers, Ben Grimm as the test pilot, and Johnny Storm as a student at Midtown High brought along to see scientific milestones be made (and minor researcher/assistant in his own right) - works, getting the four into space.
> 
> However, between studying some rather...interesting debris with interesting energy signatures, a cosmic radiation surge, and a leak from their prototype engine, they come back...changed.
> 
> (And Tony regrets ever funding Reed Richards or voluntarily doing anything with the man.)

“This committee is convened to discuss the matter of the test-flight of _The Fantastic_ , the prototype spacecraft produced by the Future Foundation. Doctor Stark, you are here regarding Stark Industries’ role in funding Future Foundation’s research.”

Tony gave a slim smile. “Happy to be here.”

Maria Claremont, chairwoman for the committee, gave a similar smile back. “Doctor Stark, you funded Future Foundation’s research during your time as CEO, with this funding continuing to the past few months.”

“That is correct.”

“And what would be your connection to Future Foundation; how did they come to your attention?”

Tony took a drink of his water, then answered. “I knew Reed Richards from college, and knew _of_ Doctor Storm’s work. When I heard of the advances they were making in achieving commercial spaceflight and all-around better feasibility for industrial spaceflight, I saw that as work that should be funded.”

Mrs. Claremont cocked her head. “You have a prior history with Doctor Richards?”

“Yea,” Tony said. “Reed, I’ve known him since we shared some classes in school; after that, with as many degrees as we have, our circles tend to align, even if the circles themselves can be eclectic.”

“So you and Doctor Richards were colleagues?”

"Like I said, we traveled in the same academic spheres, see each other at conferences and stuff, but we…tried not to interact. Tried not to, and were kept apart when in the same rooms or the same conferences.”

Claremont raised here eyebrow. “And why is that?”

“Personality conflicts, and…” Tony smiled mirthlessly. “For the sake of whatever building we were in. Too many cases of disagreeing on if something could work, someone’s theory could work or not, and trying to prove one another wrong by immediately testing it with more explosive or destructive results than those around us would like. Explosions, smoke, weird smells…a case where we accidentally made animal pheromones instead of fuel; that was an interesting time.”

Claremont tried to suppress a smile. “That would be the case of a co-patent between you two, in…2009, correct?”

Tony didn’t even bother suppressing his own smile. "Yup; I did the direct synthesizing, he did a majority of the number-crunching and the formula development, we met in the middle. That’s why he added my name when he went to patent, since it technically had potential uses; we don’t necessarily care for one another, but we respect the tenet of credit where credit’s due, even if it’s not always wanting. Well,” Tony snorted. “That and probably to share the embarrassment of making animal aphrodisiac.”

“If you and Doctor Richards have such enmity, why did you fund his and Doctor Storm’s experiments?”

Tony snorted again. “A few reasons. One, funding him gives me a nice feeling when we have to interact and he remembers I pay for his work and he has to react accordingly. And two, I might not like the guy, but that doesn’t mean I can’t see the validity or the potential of their work. Innovation means funding people doing innovative things, whether I like them or not; that’s part of once running a multinational, or heading said multinational’s R&D department.”

**Author's Note:**

> This fic's name is pulled from dialogue between Tony and Thunderbolt Ross in Civil War: _"Consequences? You bet there'll be consequences. Obviously you can quote me on that 'cause I just said it."_ I feel it's rather indicative of Tony's character, for better or worse, and fits what is going on in this scene.
> 
> A snippet from a larger story, this will hopefully have additions added sometime soon.


End file.
